Feng Shui
by Stokley27
Summary: Spencer and Ashley are a little older, a little wiser but still completely hot for each other. A Mini fanfic filled with fluffy smutage.
1. GO With the Flow

"A little to the left…almost… up a little…there, don't move. Right there, perfect."

"Spencer, hurry up, my arms are starting to get tired." Ashley breathed out. Her face was red from the physical exertion Spencer and she had been doing since the early morning hours. At this point, all she wanted was to take a nice long shower (hopefully with Spencer) to wash away all the sweat from the days activities.

"Sorry, I just want to make sure it's aesthetically pleasing and flows with the rest of the room." Spencer stood on a chair next to the one Ashley was standing on and placed a small pencil mark on the wall above the frame Ashley was holding up. She took the picture from her very grateful girlfriend. Leaning the picture carefully against the wall, she walked over to get the hammer sitting on the coffee table.

Ashley rolled her eyes, regretting, not for the first time, buying Spencer that book on Feng Shui. "Spence, you do realize that in the hour you've had me moving this picture around, it's only moved maybe three inches from the original spot you had me holding it up to begin with, right?"

"Ash, it has to balance out the other picture and the candle holders. If it's even a few centimeters off it could really mess with the Chi." The blonde pouted, as much as she loved Ashley, sometimes she just didn't_get it_.

After everything they had been through to get to this point in time, Spencer wasn't taking any chances on letting anything mess them up now. She was taking every precaution to ensure they didn't have any bad karma or vibes surrounding them.

Smiling down at the younger girl from her position still standing on the chair, trying to shake some feeling back into her arms, Ashley gave her girlfriend her well practiced 'I-don't-get-it-but-I'll-just smile-to-humor-you-to-avoid-a-pointless-argument' smile.

"Ok, but I don't understand why you just didn't let me hire an interior decorator." Ashley grumbled taking the nail and measuring tape from the blonde's out stretched hand. Measuring a half inch down from the pencil line, Ashley poked the nail in the wall to make an indentation.

"Because, sometimes, even Rock Stars should do things for themselves." Spencer grinned, passing the hammer up to Ashley. "Besides, it's fun."

Ashley merely huffed as she tapped the nail into the wall, being extra cautious not to hit her thumb like she had earlier, yeah, _that_ was a blast.

With the nail firmly in place, Spencer handed the picture up to Ashley who hung it, making sure the wire was secured on the nail. Grateful to finally be done, she went to jump down from her elevated space on the chair.

"Wait it's a little crooked, the right side needs to come down a smidgen." Spencer stood a few feet back, eying the picture critically. The way her eyebrows were scrunched up in concentration would have melted Ashley's heart at the adorableness of it - if she didn't know that the look signified she'd be spending the next 20 minutes shifting and making barely made adjustments to the picture, yet again. She silently sighed; this was not how she had envisioned spending the weekend.

12 minutes later, a record Ashley was secretly pleased about, '_I must be getting better at this hanging stuff thing_', Ashley collapsed on the large black (fake) leather couch in the living room.

The couch could have become one of the biggest fights between them during the whole process, but Ashley had backed down as soon as Spencer's bright blue eyes had began to get teary as she started describing what 'those poor cows' had to go through just so Ashley could sit her ass on their hide while watching her almost obscenely large TV.

At the time, Ashley had acted as if she gave in because of the gruesome details Spencer was about to launch into, but truth be told, the brunette couldn't stand to see her girlfriend sad over anything. If that meant she had to sit her ass on fake leather, then so be it. Ashley had learned to pick her battles.

Besides, if Ashley had to sit her ass on a fake leather couch at least it meant she had Spencer sitting next to her, doing all sorts of wonderfully wicked things with her hands and mouth, and that was a win in Ashley's book.

It wasn't as if her girlfriend had turned into one of those new age, hippies types that lived in trees to keep them from being cut down. No, Spencer still showered and still allowed Ashley to eat steak. But every since her beautiful girlfriend had discovered her other passion for social causes, righting the wrongs done to those that couldn't speak for themselves, (her first passion of course being the brunette sitting on the fake leather couch), the blonde had been more sensitive to the cruelties in the world and tried her best to not add to them and ease them as much as she could in her own small ways.

Spencer called it having a social conscious. Ashley firmly blamed it on the four years Spencer had spent at Berkley. Spencer had just finished her last year there, degree in Sociology firmly in hand.

Ashley had been over the moon when Spencer had told her that she was going to UCLA for her Masters. San Francisco was nice and all but she hated that the blonde had been hours away from her. Ashley had eventually gotten an apartment close to the Berkley campus Spencer's second year, reasoning with the blonde that she was spending just as much, if not more, money on all the flights and gas, on those rare occasions when she actually had to drive up there.

Though that had only happened twice, once by herself and the second and final time when she had made the mistake of letting her sister, Kyla, talk her into what an amazing road trip it would be for the two of them.

Thankfully, Spencer had refrained from commenting on the fact that there was no way Ashley had been spending as much money on coming to visit her as she was on the rent for the brownstone Ashley eventually settled on.

Even though Ashley's apartment was spacious enough for the both of them as well as a few of their friends if they so wanted any one else around, not that they would have because they weren't the quietest when having sex. Despite the fact that the apartment was only minutes away from the main campus and less than ten from Spencer's dorm room. Spencer had steadfastly refused to move in with Ashley. Choosing rather to stay in the dorms and deal with her fair share of roommate horror stories. Much to Ashley's great dismay.

Spencer had made a very compelling argument, stating she would feel lonely in the large place, what with Ashley's touring schedule. Ashley couldn't argue with that, knowing that she had been spending more and more time on the road than at either of her homes. That had been the first time she had learned to pick her battles.

She couldn't complain though, there had been plenty of sleep-over's when Ashley had been in town. Ashley grinned, thinking about all the nights they had spent together, cuddled under warm blankets in the colder climate of San Francisco. Not that much sleep had been had.

"What are you thinking about?" Spencer coyly asked, sitting down on the (fake) leather couch next to Ashley, handing her girlfriend a glass of ice tea. She knew that look and knew that when the brunette had it, they usually ended up spending many pleasurable hours on, up, or against any available surface.

"That I can't believe after five years of asking, you finally agreed to live with me." Ashley gave Spencer her "I'm-so-happy-pinch-me-so-I-know-I'm-not-dreaming" smile.

"Well, the first time doesn't really count." Spencer laughed.

"Oh, come on, why not? I meant it." Ashley took a drink of her ice tea and set it down on the coffee table, making sure to place it on a coaster.

"Um, let's see, I can't decide if it was the fact that you asked me to live with you, at my high school graduation, in front of my parents or the fact you seriously expected me to live with you in the loft, with no doors on the bedrooms, with your sister living there as well." Spencer rolled her eyes, having explained this for the thousandth time over the years. "Sweetie, I know we can be adventurous but really, having your sister walk in on us is not an experience I ever want to have again. Four times was quite enough to mortify me for this lifetime. Anyways, you are the least quiet person I've even known during sex."

"Oh, really? And how many other people's volume levels do you know during sex?" Ashley quirked an eyebrow at her now blushing girlfriend.

"Oh, quit it, you know what I mean." Spencer playfully smacked her girlfriend on the shoulder. "And it's not like Kyla was especially quiet whenever she had over night guests."

"Ok, ew, sorry I brought it up." Ashley scrunched her face up in disgust trying to block out all the nights she'd had to turn her Ipod up to drown out the noises coming from her sister's bedroom.

Spencer laughed, a sound that still warmed Ashley's heart after all these years, it was one of her favorite sounds. "Aww, I'm sorry, baby, but you started it." Spencer leaned over, kissing away Ashley's fake pout.

One thing lead to another, as they often did with the two of them. Ashley was straddling Spencer on the (fake) leather couch, her hands exploring the soft skin under Spencer's tank top. She softly bit the blonde's bottom lip, now _this_ was more like what she had imagined their first weekend being like.

She was kissing her way down Spencer's collarbone, moving her hands up to cup the full breasts she loved, when she felt Spencer place her hands on her shoulders and gently push her away.

Ashley couldn't help the groan of frustration that escaped.

"Ash, we can pick this back up later, but we still have a ton of unpacking to get back to." Spencer's looked imploringly at her frustrated girlfriend.

"Aww, but Spence, can't we take just a short break?" Ashley whined, not wanting to move from her favorite spot of lying on top of Spencer.

"Please, we both know it would be anything but a short break…especially if you keep doing that thing you're doing right now…" Spencer breathed out as Ashley expertly nip at her earlobe, running her tongue along the spot just behind Spencer's ear that drove the blonde crazy.

Ashley just smirked as she continued to tease the younger girl, pulling out all her little tricks because, really, making love to Spencer on the (fake) leather couch on their first day in their new home was a far more enjoyable activity than unpacking.

Ashley could feel Spencer's resolve rapidly slipping as she slipped her hands into the waistband of her girlfriend's shorts. She lightly ran her nails along the smooth skin along Spencer's hips, all the while continuing her assault on the blonde's ear. Spencer let out a light moan, her hands moving under Ashley's t-shirt, as she kneaded the tight muscles of her girlfriend's back.

"MMMmm…Spence…" Ashley moaned into Spencer's ear as the younger girl adjusted herself so that one of her toned thighs was pressing in just the right way against Ashley's sensitive center.

Finally, fully giving in to the fact that there would be no more unpacking for the rest of the afternoon, Spencer ran her hands up Ashley's back and in one fluid, well practiced move, had Ashley's shirt laying in a crumpled pile on the floor, soon followed by the lacy red bra the older girl had been wearing.

Ashley was sure that her lips hadn't moved from the spot on Spencer's neck that she had been lavishing with attentive kisses, licks and nips… and she was pretty positive that her hands had never left the soft skin of the blonde's hips but yet there she was completely naked from the waist up… it never ceased to amaze her how Spencer seemed to do that. In fact, very few things about Spencer failed to amaze the brunette.

With a quickness that left Ashley partially stunned, Spencer flipped them over, so that she was now on top of Ashley, her leg still pressed deliciously perfect against the brunette's now aching center. Ashley knew the (fake) leather couch was big but really, how Spencer had managed to flip their position without sending them both to the floor was truly a skill worthy of the most skillful Zen Master.

Spencer only smirked at the dumbfounded look on the brunette's face as she leaned down, taking a perfect nipple into her warm mouth, swirling her tongue over the hardened bud. Hips moved with the grace of synchronized swimmers as Spencer continued to suck on the perky nipple while lightly rubbing and pinching the other.

Ashley ran her hands up Spencer's side, causing the slender girl on top of her to momentarily giggle into the flesh of Ashley's breast. A grin spread across Ashley's face, loving how adorable her lover could be, while still maintaining her sex appeal.

Trying to slip the blonde's shirt over her head as fast as Spencer had removed Ashley's, she instead ended up getting it stuck on Spencer's chin. They both laughed as Spencer worked herself out of the garment. Ashley grabbed it from her hands as soon as the younger girl's head was free and with a glare at the offending T-Shirt, she threw it across the room.

"Aww, don't worry, baby, not everyone can be as smooth as me." Spencer teased, as a light blush was subsiding on the brunette's tan skin.

"Whatever…your head is just abnormally large…It's like Pumpkinhead or something…" Ashley deadpanned.

Spencer just rolled her eyes, barely hiding her smile, Ashley's ego really was easily bruised. With a mischievous glint in her bright blue eyes, she started to untangle her limbs from her girlfriend and started getting up.

"Hey, wait, where do you think you're going? We're kind of in the middle of something here." A hint of panic laced the brunette's words as she reached out to pull Spencer back on top of her.

"I was just going to take my abnormally large Pumpkin head out of your sight, wouldn't want to scare you or anything." Spencer sarcastically replied.

"What? No, I didn't say it was scary…" Ashley pulled her not very reluctant girlfriend back down on top of her, their bare breast pushing into each other. She gently held the sides of Spencer face as she kissed her, letting all her love wash through to the other girl. They both finally pulled apart, needing air.

Ashley brushed her lips against Spencer's, "Besides, I like pumpkins, they're cute." She teased, mumbling the words quietly against Spencer's lips.

Spencer's only response was another eyeroll while gently swatting Ashley's shoulder. She dipped her head down for another searing kiss while her hands pushed the brunette's shorts down passed her knees.

Ashley lifted her hips up, allowing the blonde to get her shorts off the rest of the way, the movement caused her heated center to come into contact with Spencer's, causing both girls to gasp in pleasure.

Spencer ran a two long, slender fingers over the silky outside of Ashley's thong, causing the girl beneath her to shudder in anticipation. Spencer ran her tongue down Ashley's collarbone, stopping to place wet kisses on the smooth tan skin.

"Ugghhh… please... Spence…don't tease…" Ashley moaned as Spencer lazily traced the outside edge of the thin material still covering Ashley's wet core.

"Shh, patience, baby." Spencer whispered as she continued her downward ascent, still running her tongue long Ashley's body, stopping to lightly bite those hard abs she loved. Her hands were drawing patters on the inside of the older girl's thighs and she was quite surprised at the restraint that Ashley was showing but not rushing things along, as she could tell her girlfriend was more than ready.

For her part, Ashley was just trying to enjoy the sensation of Spencer's soft lips and warm tongue all over her body, her hands were tangled up in blonde hair as she tried to calm the raging inferno the younger girl had started deep within her. Past experience had taught her how to draw their love making out and they were definitely making love at that moment. This wasn't just a quickie born out of lust or just a roll on the (fake) leather couch to relieve stress, no, this was them physically showing their love to each other in the way that came most naturally to them.

"God, I love you so much, Spencer." Ashley said, her voice low and husky. She massaged Spencer's scalp, while running her hands through the silky hair under her fingertips.

Spencer looked up from where she had been running her tongue over Ashley's bellybutton ring. Her bright blue eyes a familiar darker shade as they met darker brown ones, an adoring smile on her face. "I love you, too, Ash, always."

She would never admit it to anyone but deep down, Ashley was a sentimental kind of girl and she wanted hers and Spencer's first time in their new home to be special, not rushed. She wanted to feel every second of it and burn it into her memory, the way the (fake) leather felt against her bare skin, the way Spencer smelled of apple shampoo, ocean air and that unique Spencer smell, the way Spencer's skin tasted slightly salty from moving all day, the way Spencer moaned as she paid attention to every inch of Ashley's skin with her tongue, lips and teeth.

Ashley felt as if her heart could burst from the happiness she was feeling, at the overwhelming love she felt for the girl who was…wait…

'_Oh. My. God.'_ was Ashley's last coherent thought as she felt Spencer's teeth graze the top of her thong. Everything after that was just a jumble of groans, and half cried out words.

Taking the lacy trim between her teeth, Spencer slowly pulled the silky material down, inhaling the musky aroma that was Ashley's. She rubbed the tip of her nose over the electrified bundle of nerves as she continued to work the thong off, smiling to herself as she felt the brunette slightly lift her hips up to subtlety speed up the process.

Unable to handle being that close and not tasting Ashley, Spencer whipped the thong off the rest of the way, tossing it to the side where it landed on top of the potted plant her mother had given them as a house warming gift.

Spencer gently ran a finger between the wet folds in front of her, just barely touching the hot center that begged for entrance. She ran her finger all the way up, brushing against the hardened nub at the top, causing Ashley to hiss in pleasure.

Running her finger back down, Spencer entered Ashley's wet core, once, then slowly pulled back out, re-entering her lover with two fingers, while drawing circle's around the center of nerves.

Ashley's back arched at the contact, feeling the familiar building rushing within her very soul. "Spppeeeennnncccceeeee….ooohhhhh….Goooddddd."

Spence continued her ministrations, speeding up the steady rhythm she was keeping, only to slow it down whenever she felt the brunette getting close.

Ashley's head rolled back, incoherent moans loudly coming from her mouth as her mind spun with the most amazingly, wonderful, frustration. Each time Spencer would slow down only to speed back up, the building wave within her built up more and more intense each time.

After about the fourth time of bring Ashley to the edge only to slowly bring her back down, Spencer knew Ashley wouldn't be able to handle much more so when she felt her lover ready to go over the edge one more time, she sucked hard on the bundle of nerves she had been teasing, while pushing deep inside her girlfriend, curling her fingers to push on the spot that sent Ashley flying over the edge, body shaking, with a loud moan as her warm walls closed tightly around Spencer's talented fingers, coating them with her essence.

Ashley was shaking as the waves still continued to crash over her. She felt Spencer slide her fingers until only the tips where still inside of her. Her breathing was heavy as she tried to catch her breath from one of the most intense orgasms she had ever experienced, only to feel another powerful wave quickly start over taking her as Spencer ran her tongue down her wet folds, twirling it along the overly sensitive skin around her opening, gently tasting all of her flavor.

She felt herself fall over the cliff before she realized it was happening as Spencer pushed three fingers deeply into to her. She could have sworn Spencer touched her very soul. She saw white spots in front of her eyes that quickly turned to the bluest blue she had ever seen.

Spencer moved up Ashley's body, kissing her deeply while keeping her fingers inside until the brunette came down.

Even though her arms felt like wet noodles, Ashley managed to wrap them around Spencer, holding her close. Her whole body hummed, while the occasional tremor as she held the blonde tight, wanting not even a centimeter of space between them.

Spencer's face was buried into the crook of Ashley's neck, taking in the cinnamon scent of her chestnut curls. She could feel her girlfriend's heart thumping hard, but steady against her own. This was Spencer's favorite place to be, wrapped safely, lovingly, within Ashley's arms.

"Wow, Spencer…baby, that was…amazing…you're amazing…" Ashley slightly grimaced at her inability to articulate her feelings but her brain was still trying to catch up after what it had just experienced.

Spencer smiled into Ashley's neck. Most people would be stunned to see the Great Ashley Davies reduced to a mumbling mess of goo but Spencer loved the fact that she was the only one who was able to produce such a state from the sexy brunette.

No matter how many times they'd had sex, and really it was _a lot, _like more than Ashley thought was possible given that there were only 24 hours in the day and they didn't spend them all in bed, still no matter how many times and how many different ways they had sex, made love or just fucked, it always felt as incredible as the first time.

At first, Ashley had worried, often hearing whispers about "lesbian bed death" and whether or not she would ever be able to stay faithful to just one person, no matter how much she loved that person, for the rest of her life, because she knew beyond a doubt that she wanted to be with Spencer forever.

The first year she figured everything was still too new for the dreaded LBD to strike, besides, Spencer was still living with her parents, so that always kept things interesting. The sneaking in the blonde's house late at night, trying to keep the surprisingly loud Spencer quiet so that they didn't wake her parents just down the hall… All the new discoveries they made on what the other one liked, what made each of them moan in ecstasy or almost burst into flames from embarrassment, yeah, the first year was anything but boring.

Despite the few months they had broken up due to Ashley's immaturity, they had eventually gotten back together because really, neither of them worked well without the other.

The second year carried on mostly like the first, only Spencer left for college, which meant that they saw less of each other, but yet still, Ashley was far from bored, everyday with Spencer seemed to bring even more happiness and love than the one before. Even when they got into their little tiffs with one another, Ashley never once thought about straying or ending things, she would sooner give up oxygen than the blonde that held her heart.

By the third year, she was convinced that at any moment everything would collapse around her because, really, she had never heard of two people still being so much in love with each other like her and Spencer. They still got comments from people thinking they were a new couple. Most didn't believe that they had been together for years at that point. They couldn't keep their hands off each other, had a habit of just staring at each other with matching goofy grins and their sex life had gotten even more active since Ashley had rented the brownstone by Spencer's campus.

When the fourth year rolled around, Ashley was terrified that Spencer would meet some attractive, intelligent, sweet co-ed that would sweep Spencer off her feet while Ashley was out touring to promote her second album. She had been gone a lot that year because she had her first semi-hit on college radio. Her label immediately sent her out on a four month tour of college campuses to gain more momentum for the up and coming singer.

Ashley fears were quickly laid to rest within the first week of her being gone when Spencer had called her up, initiating what had to have been the hottest phone sex ever. Over the course of her tour, Ashley would get hot and bothered just hearing her girlfriend's ringtone. And much to Ashley's shock and then delight, her innocent little Spencer had introduced her to the joys of cybersex, complete with a webcam. Despite the distance between them almost not a single night went by while Ashley was on tour that she didn't speak or see Spencer online. While it might not have been the sex life they were accustomed to, it worked while they were apart. Besides, they more than made up for it when Ashley returned, Spencer missed quite a few classes that week.

It was now going on their fifth year together and Ashley firmly believed that Lesbian Bed Death was just a horror story started by the religious right to try and scare girls away from having relationships with other girls. And she couldn't believe she'd ever thought that Spencer Carlin, the most sexy, loving, fantastic, and, at times, kinky, girl ever wouldn't be enough to satisfy her lusty libido. Sometimes, she worried if she was enough for Spencer.

After a few more minutes of just laying there, holding each other in comfortable silence, Ashley returned from her thoughts of the past and turned her head to look at Spencer, her brown eyes shining and lively. "Hey, baby?"

"Yeah?" Spencer asked contently.

"We really have to do something about the amount of clothes you're wearing." Ashley smirked while arching one well sculpted brow. "Like, now."

Spencer shrieked with laughter as Ashley tried to flip them over on the couch, so that she was on top of Spencer, but instead of copying the blonde's move from earlier, they ended up in a tangle of limbs on the carpet.

"I meant to do that." Ashley shrugged while Spencer continued to laugh.

"Sure, you did, baby, sure you did."

"No, really, I need more room for what I'm about to do to you." Spencer's laughter quickly turned into moans of pleasure as Ashley began lowering Spencer's shorts, following the denim material with her mouth, her lips leaving goosebumps in their wake.

They spent the rest of the afternoon, rolling around on their new carpet, the unpacking completely forgotten as they got lost in each other, as they so often did. This time though, they didn't have to worry about roommates, or parents, or siblings, or anything else this time and for many many more times to come. Because this time, they were finally able to make love in a place they were making their own home.

Later on, they started to dose off, completely sated and spent, the sun was setting, as they cuddled on the (fake) leather couch. Spencer couldn't remember a time feeling more at peace, more content and filled with a sense of happiness as she was at that moment.

"Ash, I love you." Spencer whispered, her voice thick with sleepiness.

Ashley pulled the blonde tighter against her bare skin and placed a kiss on her temple. "I love you, too, Pumpkinhead."


	2. Paula's Fault

**A/N: Don't forget to check out SpashleyU (dot) com. We're raising money for The Trevor Project, a very worthy cause. Plus we have all the Spashley clips you could ever want.**

Also, this is rated M for mature, if the idea of two girls together turns you off, then this probably isn't the story for you.

* * *

"Don't forget that tonight my family is coming over for dinner." Spencer said as she set a plate of scrambled egg whites and cut cantaloupe in front of her girlfriend who was drinking her first cup of coffee of the morning while glancing through the entertainment section of the LA Times.

Ashley, still half asleep and not really paying attention, took a few moments to let Spencer's words sink into her sleep hazed thought process. '_Family...Dinner...Tonight…SHIT!'_

Spencer leaned back against the counter opposite of the island Ashley was sitting at, watching the realization slowly dawn in her lover's suddenly alert brown eyes. Shaking her head, she silently sighed.

"You forgot, didn't you?" she asked, slight humor evident in her voice.

Ashley stared at the paper, finding the black and white photo of Ellen Page and Kate McKinnon at some club together the most interesting thing ever, at least that's how it appeared.

In actuality she was trying desperately to find a way out of the mess she was finding herself in. It was too early for her to deal with an upset Spencer. She hadn't even finished her first cup of coffee! Sometimes life was so unfair. All she had wanted to do was have a nice quiet breakfast with her favorite person before being stuck in the studio all day trying to get a new bassists up to speed, but no, once again, Paula had to ruin everything.

Because in Ashley's mind, it was all Paula's fault for pestering Spencer about when they were going to have the family over to see their new home.

"No, no…I didn't forget, exactly…" Ashley stammered, her mind racing for an acceptable excuse. "I, ah, forgot today was Friday?"

"Says the girl reading the newspaper." Spencer deadpanned. She tried to fight the grin that threatened to break through. Ashley looked incredibly adorable when she had her deer in the headlights expression.

Ashley sheepishly looked down, **Weekend Highlights** were staring back at her in large red type from the open paper. _'Ok, time for plan B.'_

"I'm sorry, Spence, it's just with the tour coming up and having to break in a new bassist…" Ashley's voice trailed off as she noticed the troubled, sad look on her girlfriend's face. She closed her eyes as she silently berated herself, any talk of her upcoming tour never failed to put the blonde in a bad mood. This time was no exception.

"Just make sure you're home on time tonight, please." Spencer flatly said as she turned her back to Ashley and dumped her half finished coffee down the drain. Without another word, she walked out of the kitchen and up to their room to get changed for school.

Ashley sighed, checking the clock on the microwave, not even 10am and she already had two strikes against her for the day. '_Great, dinner with Paula and a pissed off Spencer, I'll be sure to rush home for __**that**__..._'

Upstairs, Spencer stared at the clothes hung all around in her walk in closet. When they'd first starting looking for houses, Ashley had insisted that it have two walk in closets. Spencer had laughed at her, saying there was no way she would ever own enough clothes to fill an entire walk in closet. At the time, Ashley had just laughed right back and said she'd never lived with her before and would definitely be needing the extra space.

Looking around now, Spencer knew now exactly why Ashley had insisted, half her closet was filled with clothes Ashley had said she bought for Spencer but interestingly enough seemed to wear a lot more than the blonde. To say Ashley's taste in clothing was a little more risqué than Spencer's would be like saying Antarctica was a little cold.

Spencer looked through the t-shirts hanging up, determined to push her dark thoughts into the back of her mind. She was doing well until she came across the t-shirt Ashley had given her from her first tour. Spencer just stared at it, willing herself not to get even more upset. She knew that Ashley would have to tour when they first talked about getting a place together. It wasn't as if she would be all alone, her family and most of her friends lived in LA. It wasn't even that she didn't trust her girlfriend when she was out on the road.

No, in those times when Spencer was truly honest with herself and the reasons why she got upset with the fact that Ashley would be gone for months at a time it made her feel selfish. The main reason it bothered her so much was because she missed the brunette when she wasn't there. She missed the sound of her breathing softly as she slept, she missed the feeling of their bodies and limbs tangled together as they slept. She missed waking up before Ashley and the way she would always pull Spencer even closer when she started getting out of bed. She missed those half awake morning smiles Ashley gave her when Spencer already had her first cup of coffee ready as she sat down at the counter. And those were just the things she missed in the morning, never mind the thousands of other little everyday things. Even though they had only been living together in their home for two months, theyd already had a routine down from all the time they had spent together when Ashley had the brownstone in San Francisco.

But it wasn't just the routine things she missed as well. She missed the spontaneity that Ashley brought to their lives as well. Like when Ashley would surprise her by showing up on campus to take her to lunch after she had spent the morning teaching a class of underclassmen because she had lucked out on being the Teaching Assistant for the biggest slacker in the Sociology Department or when Ashley had taken the afternoon off from the studio to surprise Spencer when she came home from a long day to find Ashley cooking dinner wearing a very small apron and nothing else.

'_Now THAT was a fun night' _Spencer smirked to herself.

And that was the biggest thing Spencer was going to miss, not just the sex, though that was very missable, but being able to just touch Ashley, feel Ashley, breath Ashley, that was what killed her most whenever the brunette had to leave town for another tour. This current one was going to be the longest one yet, seven months, five spent overseas, so they couldn't even get in a couple days together between dates.

Spencer shook her head, attempting to shake the very thoughts out of her mind. She grabbed a light blue tank top and a pair of gray slacks. She was pulling her hair up into a ponytail when she heard Ashley trying to sneak into her own walk in closet. Spencer sighed, she knew she was being unfair to her girlfriend and now Ashley was trying to stay out of her way to avoid a fight.

"Ash…" Spencer softly called out, startling the other girl. Ashley turned around, her short clutched in her hand. She braced herself mentally for an argument. She knew Spencer would never ask her to give up her career but she also knew that it bothered the younger girl more than anyone else knew that Ashley had to leave for such long stretches of time.

"Spence, I'm sorry…" Ashley began, her bright brown eyes filled with remorse and regret, it was enough to make Spencer feel even worse for the way she acted whenever Ashley's tour was brought up lately.

"No, Ash, I'm the one who's sorry." Spencer said, cutting Ashley's words off. "I've been such a baby about your upcoming tour and I'm sorry. I don't want you to feel bad for doing what you love. I'm so proud of you and I know I don't tell you enough lately."

Spencer walked over and took the shorter girl in her arms. Holding her close she gently kissed her temple. Ashley, shocked by Spencer's complete attitude change, recovered and hugged the blonde back, holding her close and breathing in the scent of Spencer that she wished she could bottle and carry around with her whenever they were apart.

Spencer looked into Ashley's eyes, their foreheads touching, "I love you, Ashley. I love everything about you, even if you have to leave me sometimes to go travel around the world so strange girls can throw their underwear at you. I love that you have something you feel so passionately about and makes you happy."

This time Ashley cut her off, "Spencer, as much as I love my music, it doesn't fulfill me or make me half as happy as you do. And even when strange girls throw their underwear at me, there's only one girl whose underwear I want thrown at me." Ashley leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Spencer's waiting lips.

"I guess it's a good thing for you that you live with her than, huh?" Spencer teased, her blue eyes twinkling.

"The best." Ashley replied, kissing Spencer again, this time with more force and passion in it. Spencer moaned softly before pulling back.

"As much as I would love to continue this, I have to teach Prof. Collins 12:30 class." Spencer said, pouting at the fact she had to give up alone time with Ashley to teach an intro sociology class to a bunch of underclassmen who could care less and were only taking it because it was required.

Ashley frowned, "How is it he's still a professor there? He has got to be the laziest man I know, well, besides your brother."

"Hey! Glen isn't lazy, he's just….unmotivated" Spencer laughed, "and Professor Collins calls it delegating but rumor has it he hasn't taught an undergrad class since he got his tenure and that was back in '94. But as long as he keeps getting those grant dollars, no one complains, well at least no one besides us TA's."

"I'm not a TA but I'm complaining because he's making me miss out on my favorite T and A." Ashley smirked.

Spencer laughed and lightly slapped Ashley on the arm.

"I swear, sometimes, you're worse than a guy." Spencer leaned down and gently kissed Ashley, "but I still love you… and I really have to get going now."

"Fine," Ashley pouted, "but as soon as your family leaves, we are so continuing this."

"That depends on how well you behave tonight at dinner." Spencer teased as she walked out of their bedroom, leaving a shocked Ashley standing there, blaming Paula if she didn't get any nookie that night because it was always Paula's fault. It wasn't her fault that Paula was good at baiting her, it came with many years of practice.

It was worse now that the woman was no longer trying to break them up. Paula had long ago given up on the idea that Spencer was just going through a phase and that Ashley was the cause. No, now she had moved on to more terrifying topics than threatening to send Spencer to a de-gaying camp to pray the gay out of her.

No, Paula had finally faced the facts, Spencer was gay and it wasn't Ashley's fault. Now she tried to be over involved in their relationship. In the last year, Paula had been throwing less and less subtle hints at Ashley to make an honest woman out of her daughter. Last time they had gone out to lunch with her, Ashley had almost choked on her salad when Paula casually mentioned that she had been invited to a wedding of one of her PFLAG friends and that the brides looked beautiful and the cake was adorable with the two little bride figurines on top.

Those conversations never ended well for her because Spencer's eyes would get big and Ashley just _knew_ Spencer was picturing them in white dresses and a cake with little bride figurines of their own. It wasn't that Ashley didn't plan on spending the rest of her life with Spencer but she didn't see the need for a huge ceremony where she and Spencer were put on display like animals in the zoo. She got that enough with her work.

On the other hand, she knew Spencer wanted the big fancy wedding and she knew one day it would happen because she couldn't deny the blonde girl anything she really wanted, but she was trying to keep that day in the future, after she was done touring. She only had one more album to do for her contract obligations. She had already decided to go into producing after that because she hated being on the road and away from Spencer more and more each time she left. She only had to get through this tour and then maybe a couple small ones and a final world one with the release of her last album. Two and a half years was all she had to put Spencer off but with Paula constantly bringing it up, it was getting harder and harder.

'_Ugh…I really hope she doesn't bring up any wedding talk tonight otherwise I am so not getting any.' _Ashley darkly thought as she got ready to leave for the studio.

* * *

"Spence?" Ashley called out as she hurriedly ran into their house. Tossing her keys and purse down on the table next to the door, she rushed through the living room and into the kitchen, looking for her girlfriend.

Ashley had been at the studio, working with the new bassist, whom didn't seem to be catching on quick enough, when she had received a frantic phone call from Spencer. She could barely make out what her girlfriend was saying because she sounded so frantic on the phone. Ashley immediately hung up and raced home, a thousand different scenarios playing over in her head, each worse than the last.

"Spence?" She called out again until she heard muffled crying in the kitchen. The smell hit her before she had fully gotten through the swinging door that lead into the kitchen. She rushed in and found Spencer at the counter staring down at a large glass dish, tears pouring out of her blue eyes.

"Ashley, I ruined dinner, they're going to be here in an hour and I've completely ruined dinner." Spencer cried.

Ashley breathed out a sigh of relief that Spencer hadn't cut off a limb or burned down the house, both very possible scenarios that had played in her head on her way home. "Oh, thank God that's all; I thought you were hurt or something."

Ashley was too busy looking down at the charred remains of what was supposed to have been dinner to notice that her words had only served to upset her already emotionally fragile girlfriend.

"That's all? That's all!" Spencer squeaked out hysterically. "Ashley, my parents, Glen and Chelsea are all going to be here in an hour and you say THAT'S ALL?!"

'_Oh, shit…'_ Ashley looked up, wide eyed at Spencer. For her part, Spencer looked just as crazy as she was acting. Her blonde hair was rumpled and her eyes had a frenzied look in them as the tears continued to spill down her cheeks.

"Shhh, it's okay, we'll fix this before they get here." Ashley gently wrapped her arms around Spencer and held her tight. "I'm sorry, Baby, I was just worried that you were hurt, you sounded so upset on the phone."

Ashley placed small kisses on Spencer's temple while rubbing her back soothingly, calming the girl down. "How, Ash? They'll be here soon and there's no way to make anything else that fast and I wanted tonight to be perfect. It's the first time my family's been here since we got settled in…"

Ashley kissed Spencer softly, effectively ending her rambling. "Don't worry, I'll handle it, go upstairs, take a shower and get ready, ok?"

"But how?" Spencer asked miserably.

"Just trust me, ok?" Ashley's brown eyes stared into Spencer's blue imploringly. Ashley pushed Spencer towards the kitchen door, "All you need to worry about is getting ready, I promise, I have this covered."

Spencer looked unsure as she headed out of the kitchen, as if in a daze, but Ashley just waved her arms, shooing the younger girl as her mind started thinking of possible solutions because despite her reassurance she wasn't sure what to do. She poked the burned food in the glass dish, not even sure what it was suppose to have been. She thought the extremely hard bits could be noodles but she could have been wrong.

Opening the refrigerator, she stared at the dismal contents, silently cursing herself for distracting Spencer the other night when the student had wanted to go grocery shopping. Ashley had instead convinced her to stay home with her and play in the Jacuzzi. At the time it seemed a lot more fun than walking around Whole Foods while Spencer squeezed various fruits and vegetables.

An idea suddenly popped in Ashley's head, she grabbed her cellphone and dialed a familiar number.

"Hey, Kelsey, I know I told you I didn't need anything else tonight but I have a really huge favor to ask…Spencer's family is coming over for dinner tonight and um, we had a little mishap with the ah…." Ashley looked back down at the burn remains, still not able to identify what it was suppose to have been. "main course… yeah, so now we have nothing but salad and dessert…Yeah…So can you run to Dolce and pick up 6 orders of the chicken parmigiana and an order of the pumpkin ravioli?"

A wide smile broke across the brunette's face as her personal assistant assured her that it wasn't a problem and she would be there within 40 minutes. "Thank you so much, Kels. When you call can you tell Giovanni that it's for me and it's an emergency?"

When the label had insisted on getting Ashley a personal assistant after she had "forgot" one too many interviews or industry meet and greets, she had thrown a fit, insisting she didn't need a babysitter. Two years later, she wasn't sure what she would do without Kelsey.

Since she had a little time before Kelsey got there with the food Ashley ran upstairs to grab a quick shower and change. She heard the shower in their bathroom still going letting her know that Spencer was still in there. As tempted as she was to join Spencer, she knew they'd never get out of there in time so she grabbed her clothes and went down the hall to use the guest bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, refreshed and fully clothed, Ashley wandered downstairs. Not seeing Spencer's blonde head anywhere, she started setting the table. As the last set of silverware was laid out next to one of their good china plates, Spencer walked in.

Ashley's breath caught in her throat at the sight in front of her. Spencer was wearing a lightweight blue spaghetti strap dress that hugged her in all the right places and made her eyes even more impossibly blue. Her hair was down in soft curls, framing her face, she looked beautiful. Ashley looked down at her own sleeveless white blouse and short white skirt, wondering if she was under dressed.

As if reading her mind, Spencer walked over to Ashley and kissed her on the cheek, "You look great."

"I know," Ashley smirked eying the blonde up and down, "but you look amazing."

A light pink tinted Spencer's cheeks, even after all this time, she still got flustered when she saw the hungry, appreciative look in Ashley's brown eyes.

"Thanks, I'm almost ready but I wanted to come down and see what you had cooked up for tonight." Spencer grinned while Ashley groaned at the horrible pun.

"Oh, Spence, that was bad." Ashley teased, shaking her head.

"Not as bad as the lack of food I see." Spencer opened the kitchen door then turned around to look at the brunette. "Ash, you said you were going to take care of it but I don't see anything cooking."

Ashley saw the panic starting to cloud Spencer's blue eyes. "Spence, trust me, I have it covered, go back upstairs, finish getting ready and when you get done, dinner will be ready to go."

"But, Ash…My family…" Spencer started protesting until Ashley gently lead her over to the stairs gave her a pat on the ass.

"Will be fed, I promise. Now go or you won't be ready when they get here." Ashley smiled reassuringly at the anxious blonde. With one more apprehensive look, Spencer went upstairs to finish her makeup.

Just as Spencer disappeared into their bedroom the doorbell rang. Ashley ran over and opened to find a woman in her late 20's, short, spiky brown hair holding a box that said 'Dolce' on the side.

"Kelsey! Thank God you made it, Spencer is a nervous wreck. Her family will be here any minute." Ashley took the box from the other woman and walked towards the kitchen.

"No problem," Kelsey smiled, showing off a dimple in left cheek, "I assumed you didn't want her family to think you ordered out so I had them put all the chicken parmigiana on one platter, the garlic potatoes on another and a final serving dish of the pumpkin ravioli."

"As always, you assumed right." Ashley smiled, once again grateful for her personal assistant. Ashley started unpacking the food. They were already on their own porcelain platters, covered and ready to be served. She set them in the over, to keep them warm. "Thank you again, so much."

"Not a problem. I'll see you Monday, don't forget you have an interview on KROQ at 9am." Kelsey said as she headed for the door. Even though she had just reminded Ashley, she'd still call the rock star bright and early Monday morning to make sure she was ready. She'd discovered over the last few years they'd worked together that Ashley needed to be reminded of things usually the day before or the day of. If told of plans weeks and days in advance, the brunette tended to forget.

Ashley called out a good bye as she put the salad together. Spencer had done most of it, all that was left was dicing the carrots and mixing it all together. As she finished the task, the doorbell rang for the second time that night. Knowing it could only be Spencer's family; Ashley smoothed down the front of her skirt and rushed to answer the door.

Opening the door she was greeted with Spencer's dad, Arthur's bright smile, his blue eyes twinkling. Next to him Spencer's mother, Paula stood, a small smile on her face.

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. C, welcome, come on in." Ashley smiled as she moved to allow their guest's in. "Spencer's still upstairs getting ready, so why don't I make you a couple drinks while I just finish up with dinner."

"Thank you, Ashley." Arthur smiled at the younger girl he considered as much of a daughter as his own.

Paula looked around the entrance way, her eyes falling on a large portrait of Spencer and Ashley on the wall. "Well, it looks as if you girls are getting settled in nicely."

"Yeah, I thought we'd never get through all those boxes but you know Spencer, she wouldn't let me slack off at all while we were unpacking until it was done." Ashley laughed as she lead the Carlins into the sunroom. It was Spencer's favorite room in the whole house. Two walls were made entirely of windows overlooking the ocean, with large skylights providing the room with nothing but natural lighting during the day. The floor was Spanish tiles in a light brown with a sunburst pattern in the middle of the room. The other two walls were brick, so it had an outside patio feeling to it.

Arthur and Paula took in the view while Ashley went over to the bar in the corner and poured them both a drink.

"This view is amazing, Ashley." Arthur said as he took the offered drink.

"And I really love what you've done with this room." Paula marveled as she sat down on the large light beige couch, setting her drink down on the ceramic tiled coffee table, making sure she still used a coaster.

"This room was all Spencer, most of the house is except for my music room and the game room." Ashley smiled, "After dinner, we'll give you the grand tour."

"We can't wait." Arthur assured her as he sat down next to his wife.

"Ok, I'm going to finish up dinner and Spencer should be down soon." Ashley said as she left the room. As much as she loved Spencer's parents, she still wasn't comfortable being alone with Paula for too long, even if Arthur was there.

"OK, dear, we'll listen for Glen and Chelsea, they should be here any minute." Paula called out as Ashley made her way back to the kitchen.

Ashley had already put the salad into the bowls and was just opening a bottle of red wine when Spencer came into the kitchen.

"Ash, it smells amazing in here. What did you do?" Spencer asked.

"I took care of it just like I told you I would." Ashley smirked as she pulled the platters out of the over.

Spencer stared at the food in awe. "Ashley…where did that come from?"

Ashley's smirk got bigger watching her girlfriend's reaction. "I called in a favor or two at Dolce and viola, dinner is served."

"Oh, you are good." Spencer smiled, moving closer to the brunette, wrapping her arms around her to pull her in for a heated kiss.

The kiss intensified as Spencer brought her leg in between Ashley's and applied pressure to the brown eyed girl's center. Ashley lost her ability to think as Spencer grinded her hips into hers. Slipping a hand under Ashley's shirt, Spencer raked her nails lightly against the bare skin she found there. Ashley moaned into the kiss. In one quick, well practiced, fluid motion, Ashley reversed their positions so that Spencer was up against the counter. She pulled Spencer's leg up around her hip as she began to grind into the blonde, her hand high up on the student's bare thigh. Spencer let out a low moan as she tossed her head back, breaking their kiss.

She then brought her head down and whispered huskily in Ashley's ear. "I cannot wait until this dinner is over…"

Ashley's knee almost went weak at her lovers tone, then her words registered with her… _'Oh, shit, dinner…Spencer's parents are here…'_ Ashley went to pull back, only to be pulled even closer by the aroused blue eyed girl, crashing their lips together again.

"Spence…wait…" Ashley tied to pant out between kisses. Spencer had moved her hand around until it was cupping one of Ashley silk clad breasts; she squeezed it playfully while nipping the singer's bottom lip.

"Girls, are you in there? Glen and Chelsea are…" Paula's voice cut in as the older Carlin walked into the kitchen. "here."

Ashley whipped her head around, staring open mouthed at Paula, who was standing in the doorway, a shocked expression on her face. Spencer's eyes got big as she took in the fact that her mother has just walked in on them in a very compromising position.

For a split second Ashley braced herself incase Paula decided to pull her off of Spencer by her hair. Logically, she knew the doctor wouldn't do that, but still, some traumas were harder to get over than others.

"Mom, when did you get here?" Spencer squeaked out while slowly disentangling herself from Ashley. The redness that covered her face belied her casual words.

"Alright, Spence." A voice laughed out from behind Paula. For the first time, they both noticed Glen standing behind his mom, his bright eyes dancing with laughter.

Spencer buried her face into the back of Ashley's shoulder, completely mortified at being caught by her mother and brother. Even though she was an adult, in her own home, she still felt like she was 16 again.

"Ashley let us in about 15 minutes ago." Paula answered. Spencer looked up and glared at her girlfriend.

Ashley turned to face her pissed off and embarrassed love, "Ah, I tried to tell you." She meekly said, only earning herself another glare.

"I see dinner is ready, why don't you two wash your hands and bring it out." Paula said looking at the serving platters and salad bowls on the counter. "We'll all be waiting in the dining room."

Paula turned and walked out of the kitchen, Glen stood there a moment smirking. He flashed a thumbs up at his sister and Ashley before following his mother out the door.

"You could have warned me or something…" Spencer started as soon as Glen left.

"I tried!" Ashley cut her off, "But you were all fast and loose with the kissing and the touching, when did I have the chance?"

"You should have tried harder." Spencer huffed while grabbing the tray the salad bowls were on, "We better get out there; I don't want my mom thinking we're doing anything else."

Ashley rolled her eyes and followed behind Spencer. Of course Paula had to walk in, that was just par for the course. If she didn't get any tonight, it was for sure Paula's fault for just wandering around in other people's homes interrupting things she shouldn't be interrupting.

Spencer started passing the bowls out to their guests while she sat the dressing on the table. Neither of them could look Paula in the eye yet and Glen snickering from his chair didn't help matters at all. There was an awkward silence for a couple minutes as Spencer and Ashley took their seats.

"Spencer would you, or Ashley, like to say grace, since this is your home?" Paula asked, her expression unreadable, tough Ashley tried to find any hidden meaning in the question.

'_Does she think I need to say grace and cleanse my soul because I had my hands up her daughter's dress right before dinner?'_Ashley mused. _'She knows I'm not good at the saying grace thing, or is this a way for her to figure out whether or not we say grace before we eat, to see if I've corrupted Spencer even more…"_

"No, Dad, why don't you say it." Spencer said, looking up at her father smiling. Spencer reached over for Ashley's hand but the brunette was so deep in her own thoughts, Spencer had to nudge her to get her attention.

Ashley looked up startled, and saw that everyone was holding hands. She took Spencer's next to her and reached across the table to take Chelsea's.

Arthur said grace and they all started digging into their salads. The tension eased as they all fell into easy conversation.

"I really love what you've done with this dining room." Chelsea said while looking around at the pale yellow walls and light hardwood floors, on the walls hung various family photos in black and white.

"And I really love this dining table." Paula added rubbing the smooth wood.

"Yeah, it's very sturdy." Ashley held back a snicker, wondering how much Paula would love it if she knew Spencer and her didn't used it only for meals.

As if reading her mind, Spencer kicked Ashley under the table, the smirk on the rock stars face instantly changing into a grimace.

"Sorry, my foot slipped." Spencer whispered innocently to Ashley.

"Yeah, right, sure." Ashley mumbled.

"Who's ready for the main course?" Spencer asked, jumping up to collect the empty bowls.

"I'll help you." Ashley started getting up, figuring Spencer would need help and she needed some extra brownie points by this time.

"Actually, why don't I help, Spencer, Ashley. You just stay here." Paula offered in a tone that said it was more like a command, while Spencer just gulped.

Ashley glanced at her girlfriend and saw the last thing she wanted was to be alone with her mother in the kitchen. "No, it's ok. You're a guest, Spencer and I can handle it."

"I insist, I would hate for the food to get cold if you two were to get _distracted_ again." Paula gave the girls a pointed look.

"Paula, please, just sit down and relax. They're both adult and this is their home." Arthur cut in.

Spencer and Ashley's cheeks both went red as they realized that Paula must have told her husband what she had walked in on.

Ashley knew she was going to have some serious making up to do with Spencer as soon as her family left. She gave a grateful smile to her girlfriend's father, a man who felt like a father to her as well. "Thanks, Mr. C, we've got this covered.

"Ok, fine." Paula conceded, sitting back down next in her seat. "If you're sure."

"Thanks, Mom, we'll be right back." Spencer assured her mother, stacking the last bowl on her pile.

"Make sure there's no hanky panky," Glen called out, "because I'm starving."

Chelsea slapped his arm and glared at him while the two girls make a hasty retreat into the kitchen.

"Glen…" Arthur reprimanded. Sometimes he just had no clue what went on inside his son's head and other times he was glad he didn't know.

"What?" Glen asked looking around the table to find his father frowning at him, his mother shaking her head and his girlfriend rolling her eyes. "Hey, it was a valid statement considering what we walked in on before."

"And, again, they are both adults in their own home, if they want to show affection for each other, they have all the right to do so." Arthur sternly said, eying his son and wife, daring them to say anything different. "so let's just drop it, okay?"

"Fine." Glen huffed, picking at the dinner roll on his plate.

At that moment, Spencer and Ashley came in, carrying the dinner platters and setting them down in the middle of the table. Ashley poured everyone a glass of red wine while the rest of the family passed the dishes around, filling their plates.

"Oh, sweetie, this smells amazing." Paula beamed. "It must have taken you all day to make this."

"Actually, I didn't…" Spencer began, hating having to admit that she burned the original dinner. Glen was never going to let her live this one down.

"It only took her a couple hours, looks like that cooking gene has finally kicked in." Ashley cut in, looking at Spencer, smiling, asking with her eyes for Spencer to go along with her little white lie.

"Well it's delicious." Mr. C said taking another large bite of the chicken parmigiana.

"Yeah, this pumpkin ravioli is amazing, Spence." Chelsea cut in.

Spencer felt slightly guilty for taking credit but she couldn't correct them now, it would make Ashley look bad, so she just smiled at the compliments and started eating.

"So, Glen, how are things going at work?" Paula inquired, to anyone who didn't know her they wouldn't have noticed the slight distain she used when saying work, but Ashley was all too familiar with that tone and picked right up on it.

It was no secret in the Carlin family that Paula was appalled by Glen's career choice. She refused to even call it a career even though Glen had been there for over 5 years. When family friends asked her what Glen was doing these days, she preferred to say he was in management for a the sports and recreation facility, it sounded much classier to her than his true title of Assistant Manager of Speedy's Bowling Alley.

"Things are really hectic right now, Winter Leagues are starting up and Lou wants to expand the shop so we can carry more brands of balls and equipment." Glen said as he shoveled more noodles and chicken into his mouth.

"Oh, that sounds nice." Paula replied, hoping for the millionth time that Glen's response would have been he was quitting and looking for a real job.

Next to him, Chelsea's expression seemed to say she had the same hope. She gave a small smile but Ashley could tell it was forced.

Ashley couldn't for the life of her figure out how the two of them were still together. It had to be the kids. While Glen was working at a bowling alley and perfectly happy with that, Chelsea was starting to get more and more recognition for her art work. She'd had a few high profile shows and Ashley knew she had a big show coming up in New York at the end of the year. Chelsea wasn't a pushy girl, or even one that seemed to have a need for status, but every girl had an idea of how their life would be and Ashley knew that Chelsea's did not envision being married to a guy whose future goals ended at being the manager of a bowling alley. Even though Paula disapproved of them having children before marriage, especially with no plans to get married in the foreseeable future, she loved her grandchildren.

"Chelsea, how's the show going?" Paula now turned her attention onto the mocha colored girl.

"It's going great, I have six new pieces for it and I should have a few more by the time it opens."

"Twell 'er about the swale" Glen said, mouth full of garlic bread.

"Glen, don't talk with your mouth full." Paula admonished. Chelsea cringed at her boyfriend's boorish behavior.

"Chelsea, you already sold a piece?" Arthur exclaimed with pride.

"Yeah, the owner of some club in New York commissioned one of my new paintings." Chelsea smiled, downplaying the fact that it was one of the hottest jazz clubs in New York.

"That's great, sweetie!" Paula exclaimed, having transferred her hopes of success from Glen to Chelsea.

"Yeah, that's great, Chels." Spencer smiled brightly at her friend.

"Oh, it's not a big deal, it just means I'm spared from having to get a "real" job in the near future." Chelsea waved off the praise.

"Don't be so modest, Babe. The money that guy gave you was more than I make in six months at Speedy's." Glen bragged, apparently having no problem that his girlfriend made a lot more money than him and basically supported them.

Seeing Chelsea look down in slight embarrassment, Spencer decided to change the subject and save her friend further attention.

"So, Dad, how are things going down at the center?" Arthur Carlin had quit his job as a state social worker four years previously when Ashley had donated the money to open a youth center that helped gang members get out of the gang life and start over.

Arthur was now the Director of the Clay Carlin Anti-Violence Youth Center. Spencer couldn't have been prouder of her girlfriend when Ashley had first suggested the idea. An idea that Arthur first insisted he couldn't go along with because of the amount of money needed to start it. Ashley had taken Arthur to meet her accountant who then showed Arthur that even though Ashley was donating the initial two million needed to start the center, he had already gone through all the trouble of hiring a grant writer. They would be able to procure enough in grant money to keep the rest of the financial burden off the young rock star.

Ashley often downplayed her part in the center, saying she only wrote a check, but Spencer's entire family where grateful to the young woman for coming up with the idea and funding it. She had made it possible to change dozens of young ex-gang member's lives. She even hired most of her road crew for her tours based on Mr. C's recommendations from the list of program graduates.

"It's going fantastic. We just hired a new teacher to start a third night class." Arthur was only too happy to talk about the center at any given opportunity, it had given him a new purpose in life and it really made a difference in people's lives, the whole reason he had become a social worker.

"That's good. I was actually thinking that now that I'm back in Los Angeles I could volunteer there a couple days a week." Arthur's lit up even more at his daughter's remark.

"Spence, it would be wonderful to have you around."

Ashley took her girlfriend's hand and gave it a light squeeze, she was proud that Spencer took after her dad so much with her giving heart.

They continued eating and catching up on each other lives. So far Ashley had been spared from anything that could potentially get her into anymore hot water with Spencer and Paula was being unusually well behaved. That should have sent off alarm bells in Ashley's head but unfortunately, she allowed herself to fall into a false sense of security.

They had cleared off the dinner dishes and served the strawberry shortcake when Paula moved in for the attack.

"You know, I was reading an article that said a lot of lesbians are buying sperm online these days."

Ashley was taking a bite of the strawberry goodness, imaging how she could use the left over strawberries later with Spencer when she almost choked. Her eyes bulged out of her head as she quickly looked over at Spencer. In that quick glance she was able to see how the idea had already settled deep into Spencer's mind and the blonde's head was instantly filled with little Spencer's and Ashley's running around their home.

"Ew, gross, Mom. I'm trying to eat." Glen scrunched his face up in disgust.

Ashley took slow deep breaths, trying to hold off an approaching panic attack. Paula had gone from not so subtle wedding hints to now talking about babies.

"What? I'm just saying, I'm not getting any younger and I'd like to be able to enjoy my grandchildren before I'm too old to even remember my name." Paula smiled innocently at Ashley, but the brunette knew Paula had just added another check mark in her column.

'_Oh, she's good, I'll give her that. Spencer is never going to let this one die down.' _

"Don't put us in the retirement home, yet." Arthur chuckled. "The kids still have plenty of time."

"Hey, aren't Annabelle and Reggie enough?" Glen asked, mentioning his and Chelsea's two children.

"Of course they are, Sweetie, but I want to be able to enjoy all of my grandchildren while I'm young enough to do things with them." Paula reached over and patted her son's arm.

"So, are you two planning…" Paula turned towards Spencer who had a dreamy look on her face and Ashley who still looked shocked.

"Anyone want more wine?" Ashley suddenly yelped, cutting Paula off as she refilled her glass and drank it right down.

Spencer shot her girlfriend an annoyed look. "Ashley, don't be rude, my mother was talking."

"Oh, you were?" Ashley turned to Paula, the panic evident in her voice. "I'm sorry, why don't I just clean up these dessert dishes and you all can continue talking."

Ashley jumped up and started gathering the dishes, her mind racing so much that she didn't even hear Glen protest as she took his unfinished (second) dessert. She was walking out the dining room entrance when she stopped and turned around. With a shaky smile aimed at no one in particular, she grabbed the bottle of wine and took it with her.

In the kitchen Ashley rinsed off the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. She took a few deep breathes in an attempt to calm her beating heart. She could just go out there right now and strangle Paula. It was bad enough she had Spencer in constant wedding thoughts but now bring up a baby was hitting below the belt.

Ashley fully planned on having a family with Spencer, one day, in the far future. It wasn't something she saw fitting into their lives anytime soon. She was still enjoying her alone time with Spencer, she wasn't sure she was willing to give that up yet. Besides, the thought of being a parent terrified her, it wasn't as if she had the best parents to look up to and even though she had Spencer's family, she couldn't shake the feeling that she would turn out to be a parent like her own.

"It's safe to come out now. Everyone is getting ready to leave soon." Spencer said as she brought the empty glasses in, setting them on the counter.

"Huh? I wasn't hiding." Ashley said, cursing herself for how weak it came out.

"Yeah, right." Spencer laughed but it wasn't a happy sound, more of a tired, disappointed laugh. She rolled her eyes as she walked towards the dining room. "At least come out and say good night to my family."

"Spence…" Ashley tried to protest but she was only met with the swinging kitchen door.

Everyone had moved from the dining room and was now standing by the entryway. Ashley walked over and stood next to Spencer, feeling the blonde's disappointment rolling off her in waves.

"Thank you both for having us over tonight, dinner was great." Chelsea gave Spencer and then Ashley a hug good bye.

"Yeah, it was nice to have a night away from the kids." Glen laughed. He hugged his sister good bye and then turned to Ashley. As he was hugging her he whispered in her ear, "Good luck."

"Thank you both for coming, you'll have to bring the kids over soon to go swimming in the pool." Spencer offered as Glen and Chelsea left.

"Dinner was great, Sweetie." Arthur enveloped Spencer in a big hug, laying a quick kiss on the top of her head. "Come by the center anytime you get the chance."

"I will and thanks for coming." Spencer relied.

"You both will have to come over for dinner." Paula pulled her daughter close, "We need to have a family game night soon."

"Sure, Mom." Spencer tried to hold back a groan. Next to her Arthur had Ashley in the same bear hug he'd just had Spencer in.

"Thank you both for having us over." Paula hugged Ashley quickly.

"Thanks for coming." Ashley said with fake sincerity, '_And ruining any chance I have to get some nookie in the next week._' She silently added.

Waving goodbye, Ashley shut the door and leaned against it, breathing a sigh of relief while trying to figure out how to do a little damage control with her pissed off girlfriend. Spencer had turned and walked out of the room in a huff as soon as Ashley had shut the door. The worst part was she was exactly sure why Spencer was so pissed, it couldn't have been because she had been in the kitchen for too long. She'd only been in there for about five minutes when Spencer walked in.

Ashley crept into the kitchen where Spencer was rinsing off the rest of the dishes and putting them none to gently into the dishwasher.

"Hey, need any help?" Ashley quietly asked. Spencer's back was to her, ridged and she knew something was wrong and yet again she wanted to blame Paula but a little voice in her head said this was entirely her own fault.

"No, thank you." Spencer curtly replied and continued to take her aggression out on the unoffending dishes.

Ashley took a few steps closer to Spencer, wrapping her arms around the blonde from behind her pulled her against herself. She felt a little resistance at first but ignored it as Spencer allowed her to hold her.

"Spence…what's wrong?" the brunette softly asked while gently kissing Spencer's neck.

"Nothing."

"Spence…" Ashley took the glass out of Spencer's hand that the blonde had scrubbed clean about ten times already and set it on the counter. She then turned her around so that she was facing her. "Don't tell me nothing when I can clearly tell something is."

The sadness in Spencer's blue eyes took Ashley's breath away, it killed her to see Spencer sad. She would rather deal with a pissed off Spencer than a sad Spencer.

Spencer hung her head and stared at the floor while twisting her fingers, a nervous habit that she'd had as long as Ashley could remember. "I just wished you would have told me sooner."

"Huh? Told you what?" Ashley lightly cupped Spencer's chin and brought her head up until their eyes connected.

"That the idea of having children with me repulsed you." Spencer whispered.

Ashley's eyes went wide as she silently berated herself. "Spencer…" she tried to get the younger girl to look at her but she wouldn't, her eyes were everywhere but on the brunette in front of her.

"Spence," Ashley tried again, putting all the tenderness and love she felt for Spencer in that single word. "I _do _want to have babies with you, I do want to marry you."

Spencer looked up, her eyes now filled with surprise and hesitation.

"I want all that with you, but I want it on our terms, when _we're_ ready, not when your mother thinks it's time or because she's pushing us into it." Ashley pulled her love close and stroked her back comfortingly as she continued. "I want all that when you've finished your degree and I'm not on the road all the time. I want our kids to know me because I'm here with you and them, not by what they see on MTV or some trashy tabloid. I mean, I would be a horrible person if I left you alone with a mini version of me."

Spencer's eyes welled up with tears, hearing everything she'd been wanting to hear for so long but had been afraid to ask. She had been so afraid of pushing Ashley away by scaring her with talking too much about the future. Ashley was very much an "in the now" kind of person. Long term plans and commitments tended to freak the rock star out.

"I would love a mini Ashley." Spencer's doubts disappeared with Ashley's honest, heartfelt words.

"You only say that because you have no clue how bad I was as a child." Ashley placed a small kiss on the tip of Spencer's nose. "If there was something I wasn't supposed to get into, I was in it. If there was something I wasn't supposed to do, I did it a dozen times. In short, I was a holy terror."

"What? You? No way!" Spencer teased, the mood between them much lighter than it had been.

A serious expression covered Ashley features, "I know, it's hard to believe because I'm so perfect now that I was an imperfect child."

At that, Spencer laughed, "Shut up and kiss me before you ruin the mood, you egomaniac."

Ashley didn't need to be asked twice, she placed her lips on Spencer's soft, waiting ones. Ashley moaned as she felt Spencer slide her tongue into her mouth and her hand up the back of the brunette's shirt, raking her nails against the bare skin. There was an immediate hunger in Spencer's kiss that Ashley matched. They continued the kiss as Spencer walked Ashley backwards until she was up against the island in the middle of the kitchen.

Somehow on the short way there, Ashley's shirt and bra had ended up on the floor along with her skirt. Hands, lips and tongues were soon all over exposed skin. She felt Spencer squeeze her hips, "Up, now." Spencer whispered, her voice husky and low. Ashley moaned, Spencer in control was one of the biggest turn-ons ever.

Ashley pulled back and found herself lost in dark blue eyes. She hopped up, the cool tile a sharp contrast to the heat of her body. She wrapped her legs around the blonde pulling her as close as possible while unzipping the back of Spencer's dress. She was about to push the straps down when Spencer took a step away from her. Ashley let out a groan of frustration.

"Not yet." Spencer smirked as she headed over to the refrigerator.

"Spence…baby, please…" Ashley practically begged.

"I'll be right there." Spencer purred as she got a couple items out of the fridge. Ashley broke into a wide smile as she saw Spencer emerge with the carton of left over strawberries and a can of whip cream.

"God, I love your dirty mind." Ashley said through her smile, it was amazing how alike they could think at times. She had been imagining something quite similar during dessert.

"I learned from the best." Spencer set the carton and can on the island top next to Ashley and took out a strawberry. She gently bit one end of a ripe strawberry then bent down and held it above her girlfriend's mouth.

Ashley leaned up, biting the other end. Some strawberry juice dribbled down her chin as her and Spencer's mouth's met in a wet, juicy kiss. Spencer broke the kiss off, swallowing her bite of strawberry then leaned over and slowly licked the remaining juice off Ashley's chin. Then she continued up, licking every drop off Ashley's kiss swollen lips.

"Mmmm, yummy." She breathed out huskily against Ashley's lips. Ashley could only moan. Spencer had barely touched her anywhere and she was already incredibly wet.

Ashley tried to remove Spencer's dress straps once more, but Spencer pushed her hands away, holding up a finger and waving it at her. "Nope, you just sit back and watch."

The singer pouted, but did as she was told, leaning back and gripping the edge of the countertop behind her. Spencer took a couple steps back and turned around messing around with the stereo MP3 player mounted under one of the cabinets.

Ashley couldn't help the moan that escaped her as Spencer turned around, the unmistakable thumping of the bass line coming through the speakers. Spencer smirked as she slowly lowered the left strap of her dress, her hips swaying to Melissa Ferrick's Drive. She then slowly lowered the other strap, until they both were hanging off her toned shoulders, a coy look on her face as some of her hair fell down, covering her left eye. It was the sexiest thing Ashley had ever seen and it took all of her self control from not jumping off the counter and taking Spencer right there. The only thing stopping her was she didn't want to miss the rest of the show.

Spencer held her dress up with one arm as she continued moving to the beat of the song, she threw her head back and ran one hand down her body taking her dress with it. She stepped out of the garment and sauntered over to her lover, her eyes burning with desire.

Ashley reached up to pull Spencer down, needing to feel her lips against hers but Spencer had other plans as she gently pushed Ashley's hands away, placing them back on the counter behind the now extremely turned on and frustrated brunette.

Spencer grabbed a strawberry placed it on her mouth, then she picked up the can of whipped cream and sprayed a small circle on Ashley's tight abs. Ashley jumped slightly as the cold, sticky cream covered her belly button. Spencer parted Ashley's legs and moved between them, pushed her hair back out of the way then bent down, running the strawberry in her mouth in the whip cream, still moving her hips to the beat of the music in a highly erotic show. The blonde then slowly ran the strawberry up Ashley's firm abs, between her full breasts, leaving a trail of the sticky cream in its wake until finally bringing it to Ashley's eager mouth where they both bit into it at the same time, their mouths soon becoming a mixture of strawberry, whip cream and tongues mingling together.

Ashley ran her hands through Spencer's silky hair, drawing the blonde closer, her center screaming as Spencer's body pressed against it. Her hips started grinding into Spencer's flat stomach as if they had a mind of their, which at that point they might have.

Spencer pulled back yet again and playfully wagged a finger at her impatient girlfriend. "Uh, huh, not yet."

As much as Ashley loved take charge Spencer, it never failed to drive her insane with desire. Spencer then looped her finger tips around the silk of Ashley thong and slowly pulled it down. Ashley's body shook in anticipation of feeling her lover deep inside her.

With a wink, Spencer moved a few steps back, then placing her hands on either side of Ashley's hips she lowered her head down and started sensually licking the whip cream off the older girl's fit body, leaving a trail of goosebumps where ever her tongue touched. Ashley gripped the countertop hard enough to turn her knuckles white, it was all she could do to keep from running her hands through Spencer's hair once more and guiding that talented mouth down to where she needed it the most.

Spencer reached over and grabbed the can again, never taking her mouth of Ashley's body. She ran her tongue along the trail of whip cream just above the other girl's abs as she sprayed more of the cream on each of Ashley's breasts. She then covered one of the hard nipples with her warm mouth, sucking hard and licking every drop of whip cream off it.

Ashley moaned at the contrast of sensations flowing through her body, the stickiness of the whip cream, the coolness of it on her blazing skin, Spencer's warm, wet mouth. She was on sensory over load and felt her arms starting to give out as one long slender arm wrapped around her, holding her up.

"Oh, fuuuck, Spence…please…" Ashley moaned as Spencer turned her attention to the other breast, lavishing it with the same care as she had the first one, making sure all the sticky substance was licked clean.

Spencer turned Ashley around, so that she was now sitting long ways on the counter as the blonde climbed up on there with her. She softly laid Ashley down as she settled between her lover's legs, taking off her bra she took the whip cream can and sprayed whip cream on her breasts, then she slowly moved her body up the one below hers, covering both of them in whip cream.

"Please, Baby, fuck me…" Ashley whimpered, her body on fire and her head light with need.

"Since you asked so nicely…" Spencer whispered in Ashley's ear, her voice heavy with desire.

Spencer ran two fingers through some of the whip cream from the top of her breast that hadn't smeared or melted already and went to place the fingers in her mouth when Ashley stopped her and placed her own mouth over the cream covered digits. Ashley sucked Spencer's fingers hard, running her tongue up and down the sweet skin, making sure they were well lubricated. Spencer moaned her eyes closed as her hips grinded into Ashley's.

Spencer wrapped her free arm around Ashley's neck, cradling her head as she opened her eyes to stare deeply into the golden brown pools below.

"I love you so much." She tenderly said as she lowered the fingers Ashley had been sucking on and entered the brunette deeply.

Ashley's head went back and would have cracked on the hard countertop if Spencer hadn't been cradling it lovingly in the crook of her arm. "I love you too, I love you so so so much Spencer…"

Their bodies moved as one, the whip cream melted and sticking to their skin in some place while adding an extra layer of lubrication in others. It was an odd but not unpleasant sensation for them both.

"Oh so close, baby, so close…I love you, Oh God, Spence, I love you so much…" Ashley's nails dug into the soft flesh of Spencer's back as her orgasm quickly overtook her when the younger girl started rubbing her thumb over the oversensitive bundle of nerves at her center.

Spencer kissed Ashley deeply, keeping her fingers inside the warmth of her lover, feeling the orgasm as it ripped through Ashley's body.

Ashley's body continued to tremble as Spencer started her ministrations again, bring the brunette quickly to a second orgasm. "Oh, fffuuuuucckkk…baby….urrrgghhhh…"

No one could ever get the reactions of out Ashley that Spencer could. No one could make Ashley beg like Spencer could and the reverse was true. Even though Spencer didn't have the amount of experience that Ashley had, in the very limited experience she did have, she knew that no one could ever make her feel as loved, as complete as the woman in her arms at the moment did ever day without even trying.

They shared a few slow, tender kisses while Ashley felt the shaking in her body subside but not the desire she still had for the blonde wrapped around her.

"Why don't we go take and shower and get this stickiness off of us." She suggested with a raise of one eyebrow. Spencer grinned, she knew exactly what Ashley was suggesting.

"Why don't we skip the shower and hit the Jacuzzi instead?" She suggested, getting an even bigger grin from her girlfriend.

"God, I love how you think!" Ashley jumped off the countertop after Spencer had gotten down. They were heading for the Jacuzzi when Ashley stopped and ran back into the kitchen.

Spencer stared after her confused but smirked as she saw what Ashley had run back for.

"I plan on us both working up quite an appetite." She explained carrying the carton of Strawberries in one hand while taking Spencer's in the other.

"Oh, me too, it's still early." Spencer smiled as she leaned over, kissing Ashley soundly on the lips.

Ashley could only smile as she turned on the jets and jumped into the Jacuzzi, Spencer right next to her as they picked up right where they had left off in the kitchen. They stayed in the Jacuzzi long after they should had but only moved their lovemaking into the bedroom until they both passed out as the suns first rays of the day bathed them both in a golden light, their limbs tangled up together, both with a very happy and satisfied smile on their lips. An empty carton of strawberries and an equally empty can of whipped cream on their night stand.


End file.
